Every day sees the introduction of more and more marvels of the technological revolution. As machines become ever more sophisticated, the tension between user and machine has increased. In particular, the tension between a user and a machine is generally highest when the machine breaks down. What rudimentary instructions that are provided are typically directed toward instructing a user on how to set up the machine for initial use. Very little, if any, instruction is provided explaining how the machine works and how to repair it when it does not work. In fact, the most a user generally has when a machine breaks down is a cryptic list of error codes at the very back of the instruction manual.
Currently, as a result, upon the occasion of a machine breakdown, the solution path for a user attempting to correct the problem without calling maintenance, is as follows. A user detects a device error or other support issue. At that point, the user must determine the following: product identification, problem, configuration of device, and so forth, as best as he or she is able. If the problem can not be fixed by referring to the instruction manual, the user must then contact support personnel for assistance. Support can be internal or external. In a common case, a user opens a browser and navigates to a customer care/support site on the World Wide Web. Once at the appropriate web site on the Internet, however, the user must still navigate through the web site to the correct product and locate the correct error code solution page.
Assuming the user can decipher the error codes, the user must test the solution in hopes he or she received the right answer to the right question. In short, the current device breakdown solution process is difficult, complicated, and time-consuming and places most of the burden of solving the problem on the user.
Thus, there is a need in the art for providing an error code indexing and interpretation apparatus and method that quickly and easily connects a user with appropriate machine repair remedies. It, therefore, is an object of this invention to provide an error code indexing and interpretation apparatus and method for use in integrated machine systems with multiple devices.